John 19: Will You Finish Your Race?
Verse of the Day: (V30) “When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”
1. Fault (V1-18)
V6 “When the chief priests therefore and others saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him: for I find no fault in him.”
Though Jesus came to this earth to love and forgive, the chief priests hated him and wanted him dead. They went to Pilate, the Roman governor, and expected him to charge and crucify Jesus. Pilate left the decision to them, as he found no fault in Jesus. They then chose to crucify Jesus, and acknowledged Caesar, the Roman emperor as their King.
V15 “But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar.”
2. Finished (V19-30)
V19 “And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.”
Though Pilate was not a Jew, yet by God’s grace, he wrote a title, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS, which truly described Jesus. Jesus was not only their King, but the King of kings and the Lord of lords, yet He was willing to die for the sins of the world. Therefore when Jesus said, It is finished, He had indeed sacrificed His life for the world, and finished the race that His Father, had commanded Him to run.
V30 “When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”
3. Fulfilled (V31-42)
V33 “But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs:”
It was the duty of the Roman soldiers to break the legs of those whom they crucified to ensure that they were dead before taking their bodies from the cross and cast them away. However, when they went to Jesus, He was already dead. Hence the soldiers did not break Jesus’ bones, and thus fulfilled the prophecy that not a bone of Jesus was broken.
V36 “For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.”
Prayer of the Day:
Dearest God, please help me to finish my Christian race with joy and victory.
